1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cover devices for covering shopping carts of the type routinely used in grocery stores to transport purchased items from inside the store to the parking lot outside the store. A novel cover according to the invention may be readily slipped onto the shopping cart and will snugly accommodate itself to the shopping cart in a manner to protect the contents against being exposed to sun, rain, snow, sleet, and dust as is often the case when it is necessary to transport the contents of the cart after shopping during a rainstorm or duststorm from inside a grocery store into a motor vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of covers for shielding from the elements are available in the prior art. For example, umbrellas, are the most notable and the most widely used. J. C. Penney's mail order catalog for 1988 offered a vinyl liner for personal laundry type carts. This liner was adapted with a top to fit over the top edge of the cart.
It is the primary object of the invention to provide a cover for preventing impingement of snow, rain, sleet or other undesirable percipitation, as well as dust upon the contents of a standard grocery store shopping cart. Another object of the invention is to provide a cover to prevent the soiling of foods in shopping bags with dust and other debris which may be blown onto the contents of the shopping bag by wind.
Another object of the invention is to provide a shopping cart bonnet on which various advertising of the store providing the cart and bonnet may be imprinted.
Among the features of the novel invention appealing to the marketplace are its convenience, durability, compactness, inexpensiveness, lightweightness and ease of use.
The invention is particularly helpful during rain or snowstorms when transporting groceries from a store to a cart in a parking lot. Purchased groceries do not become wet in transit. If packaged in paper sacks, the sacks do not become soggy and torn. The novel invention is marketable directly to consumers and may be provided as a service by grocery store proprietors.
The novel invention may be mass-produced using conventional and readily available materials and manufacturing processes. The novel bonnet may be produced in a manner similar to types of covers used as basketliners or as protectors for outdoor furniture. Comparable production procedures may be used. Material for the bonnet include flexible polyvinylchlorides, plastics, elastic and strips of Velcro fasteners, for example. Finishing of the item includes placement of elastic, plastic string, or Velcro by machine stitching, for example.
The foregoing outlines some of the more pertinent objects of the present invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more pertinent features and applications of the invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a further understanding of the invention may be obtained by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description describing the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.